Want to suck the motivation out of your people? Move the goalposts on them. Change the rules mid-game enough times and I promise, even the most obstinately-positive of your employees will learn to give up. Have you read Spencer Johnson’s bestselling classic, Who Moved My Cheese? It’s all about how individuals deal with change. I have to […] Read more… Read More»
I spend a lot of time reading people’s social media bios. I know, get a life. But people fascinate me, and I love the opportunity different social sites give us to see how someone describes themselves in a sentence or two. For a lifelong student of psychology, you can’t beat it with a stick. Now, […] Read more… Read More»
The other day I read an article about a well-known company anticipating a big competitive problem: huge attrition when its first employees are vested for their stock options, four years after their hire date. The CEO expects to hemorrhage talent, many of which he expects to be snapped up by his competitors. His question, asked […] Read more… Read More»
Is anyone with me when I suggest that perhaps, just perhaps, we businesspeople can take ourselves a little too seriously sometimes? Here is the disclaimer I posted on an earlier blog, just to poke a little fun at lawyers and the “leaders” who kowtow to them. If you like it, maybe your company can adopt […] Read more… Read More»
Wednesday, I received an unexpected early birthday present in the form of a tweet from my friend Vala Afshar,* congratulating me on hitting #16 on Forbes 50 Top Social Media Power Influencers. There are some amazing leaders on this list, many of whom I’ve befriended over the years, as well as a number I admire from afar. […] Read more… Read More»
If you’ve ever created a business from scratch, you’ve unquestionably run into this problem: The how-to of your company is entirely in your head, and it’s obvious to you. Articulating it in a way that facilitates your firm’s growth – that part is not nearly as obvious. Maybe, if your temperament is anything like mine, […] Read more… Read More»
I’m going to share the policy I’ve been following since my first Tweet in April 2009. It works well for me. You can adopt this policy for yourself or not, as you wish. Ready? It’s really straightforward. I follow everyone back on Twitter. (Just about). There, that’s my policy. Here’s why: For whatever odd reason, Twitter […] Read more… Read More»
If you haven’t read The Wisdom of Crowds, by James Surowiecki, you owe yourself the treat. It’s fascinating. The main premise is to show how our collective wisdom just plain crushes the expertise of even the highest-paid gurus, at least over the long-haul. Surowiecki also explores a number of side-issues, and he does it in the […] Read more… Read More»
First, let’s be clear on the definition of “Stupid PR Mistake.” A stupid Public Relations mistake is an error in judgment that attracts negative attention from customers and/or the press. It creates a backlash that often ends up costing the company more money than the mistake was meant to bring in. In other words, it’s […] Read more… Read More»
Shawn and I have had a tremendous first week with this new blog – we thank you all for checking it out and for spreading the word among your network. With no advanced fan fair whatsoever, this site has eclipsed the readership of both of our individual blogs. Score one for synergy! Here are a […] Read more… Read More»
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